Dogs
Dogs are the first enemies encountered in the game, and only appear in'' Penumbra: Overture'' (however, a short hallucination of a dog can be witnessed in the Kennel of ''Penumbra: Black Plague''). They are zombified dogs that prowl around most of the hallways Philip Buchanon must travel through. Behavior 'Methods of Killing' The dogs can be killed in the game. The most common method to dispatch them is to sneak up on them with a melee weapon ready, and strike (with either a hammer or pickaxe, the latter being more effective). Beef Jerky can be used to temporarily distract them, but only if Philip has not been sighted yet. It's extremely important to continue fighting a feral dog once you begin the attack, as it will sometimes run away and howl, calling other dogs to help attack you. When attacking, it is a good idea to allow it to regain its balance, and knock it down again so it doesn't run away as seen here. Damaging an explosive object such as a compressed gas cylinder and throwing it at them will kill them. Later in the game, you can also lure them into a steam chamber with the help of some Beef Jerky, close the door on them, and pull the lever. 'Methods of Escape' They are quicker than the player character, so if you are being chased you either need to fight back, or get to somewhere that they can't reach. This can be in a new area (where the game goes to a loading screen) or a door that only opens outwards, as dogs can't use doorknobs. They can, however, push an inward-opening door and gain access to the following room. This can be prevented by quickly moving heavy objects such as crates in front of the door, though this will at best slow them long enough for you to run somewhere safer. They are also not very good at turning corners, making escapes possible in areas with winding corridors. Dogs are unable to climb anything but stairs or slopes, so it is recommended that, if Philip is in an area where outward-opening doors or new areas are not readily accessible, he seek higher ground or create it himself. History In one area of the game, there is a yellow sign with what appears to be a German Shepherd dog on it, and a stylized surveillance eye. This hints that the dogs roaming the mines may in fact have originated from guard dogs that were brought into the area some time ago. It is suggested that the dogs have contracted some form of the Tuurngait Virus, though only vaguely. This is supported by the impossibly long amount of time they must have remained in the mine with little to no food, in addition to their rotting flesh, glowing eyes and how difficult it is to put them down. They were once kept in the Kennel area of the shelter facility, but seem to have escaped since then. The method of their escape is unknown, but it is possible that they entered the mine through Spider Hater's room and spread out through the mines from there. Trivia * Done in a referential way, the Kennel area in Penumbra: Black Plague has ambience music that matches another piece of music in Penumbra: Overture ''that plays when dogs are nearby in the latter game. Most likely to remind the player of the dog encounters in ''Overture. * Dogs are known to have a sense of smell 40 times stronger than that of humans, though the dogs in-game do not seem to have this. It is very likely that the virus they've contracted has greatly weakened their sense of smell, otherwise the dogs would almost always find the player no matter where they were, though this would've made the game painfully harder. 'Gallery' Dog3.jpg|Corpse of a dog killed by Philip in the iron mine. Dog1.jpg|Ditto, this time two. Dog4.jpg|Philip attacking a dog with a fatal blow from a pick axe. Dog2.jpg|An unused appearance of a dog in the storage room of the mines. DogCutout2.png|Model render of the dog noticing Philip. DogCutout1.png|Model render of the dog while it's idle. Category:Enemies